SSAT Upper Level: Sections and Timing

What’s on the SSAT Upper Level?

The SSAT Upper Level is for students now in grades 8 to 11, so it’s the level an 8th grader takes when applying to high school. It has 150 scored multiple-choice questions in Quantitative, Reading and Verbal sections, plus an unscored writing sample and experimental section, for 3 hours 10 minutes with two breaks. Wrong answers lose a quarter point, and calculators aren’t allowed.

What’s on each section of the SSAT Upper Level?

Three kinds of scored multiple-choice sections (Quantitative, Reading and Verbal), a writing sample and a short experimental section. Every multiple-choice question has five answer choices.

Part	Questions	Minutes	Scored?
Writing sample	1 prompt	25	No
Break		10
Quantitative 1	25	30	Yes
Reading	40	40	Yes
Break		10
Verbal (30 synonyms, 30 analogies)	60	30	Yes
Quantitative 2	25	30	Yes
Experimental	16	15	No
Total	150 scored	3 hr 10 min with breaks

The Quantitative sections cover arithmetic, elementary algebra, geometry and other math concepts, and calculators aren’t allowed. For the writing sample, your child has 25 minutes and chooses between a personal and a general prompt. It isn’t scored, and a copy goes to the schools that receive the score report.

Which students take the Upper Level?

Students now in grades 8 to 11, applying to grades 9 through a postgraduate year. The level follows your child’s current grade, so an 8th grader applying to 9th grade takes the Upper Level, and a 7th grader takes the Middle Level.

How is the Upper Level scored?

Each correct answer earns 1 point, each wrong answer loses a quarter of a point, and skipped questions earn nothing and lose nothing. Raw scores become a scaled score of 500 to 800 for each of the Quantitative, Verbal and Reading scores, for a total of 1500 to 2400. Percentiles compare your child with first-time test takers in the same grade over the last three years.

When are the remaining Standard test dates?

The test owner lists these Saturday Standard paper test dates for the 2026–27 testing year: November 14 and December 12, 2026, and January 9, January 30 and March 13, 2027. Online at-home and Prometric tests run on other dates, and schools set their own application deadlines.

Sources

E3n, What’s on the Upper Level SSAT?. The Upper Level sections in order, question counts, minutes, the 3 hour 10 minute total, the unscored writing sample and experimental section, the writing prompt types, and that calculators aren’t allowed.. Checked October 19, 2026.

E3n, SSAT Candidate Handbook for Testing Year 2026–2027. The grades for each level, that the Middle and Upper Levels share one format and timing, five answer choices, and the quarter-point rule for wrong answers.. Checked October 19, 2026.

E3n, SSAT for Families Paper Testing. The two 10-minute breaks and where they fall, and the remaining 2026–27 Standard test dates.. Checked October 19, 2026.

E3n, Sample Upper Level SSAT Score Report. Upper Level section scores of 500 to 800 and a total of 1500 to 2400.. Checked October 19, 2026.

E3n, How should I interpret the SSAT score report?. Percentiles compare students with first-time test takers in the same grade over the last three years.. Checked October 19, 2026.

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More about the SSAT

What’s on the SSAT Middle Level?

The SSAT Middle Level is for students now in grades 5 to 7. It has the same format as the Upper Level: 150 scored multiple-choice questions in Quantitative, Reading and Verbal sections, plus an unscored writing sample and experimental section, for 3 hours 10 minutes with two breaks. Its scores use their own scale, and wrong answers lose a quarter point.

What’s on the ISEE Upper Level?

The ISEE Upper Level is for students applying to grades 9 to 12, so it’s the level an 8th grader takes for high school. It has four multiple-choice sections with 160 questions and an unscored 30-minute essay, for 2 hours 40 minutes of testing plus two 10-minute breaks. Wrong answers don’t cost points, and calculators aren’t allowed without an approved accommodation.

Which entrance test does my child’s school use?

The school decides, and its admissions page says which test it takes. Many Catholic high schools use the HSPT, often through their diocese. Independent schools usually ask for the ISEE or the SSAT, and many accept either. New York City’s specialized high schools use the SHSAT, and Catholic high schools in New York City and on Long Island use a test called the TACHS.

The SSAT, level by level

The SSAT (Secondary School Admission Test) is an admissions test for private and independent schools. Your child takes the level for the grade they’re in now: Elementary for grades 3 and 4, Middle for grades 5 to 7, and Upper for grades 8 to 11. The Middle and Upper Levels share one format, about 3 hours 10 minutes with breaks. Entrance Lane is writing full-length SSAT practice tests.